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                                                                                    May 14, 2020
                                                                       
The Honorable Robert Wilkie
Secretary of Veterans Affairs
Washington, D.C.

Dear Mr. Secretary:

On behalf of B’nai B’rith International’s more than 100,000 members and supporters in over 40 countries, we write to express our outrage over the display of swastikas, iron crosses, and quotes honoring Adolf Hitler on the gravestones of three German prisoners of war in the Fort Sam Houston and Fort Douglas military cemeteries.  These deeply offensive symbols and language appear alongside the tombstones of American soldiers, including some who fought Nazi oppression in World War II.

As America’s oldest and best-known Jewish advocacy and social service organization, we are greatly pained that such sacred ground in Texas and Utah is besmirched by the ghastly emblems of a genocidal regime that sought to destroy the Jewish people.  That the gravesites are maintained with taxpayer dollars only adds to the offense.

We are living in an age when anti-Semitism is increasing and knowledge of the Holocaust is diminishing.  The fact that swastikas today appear on placards in rallies demonstrates the extent to which the lessons of the Holocaust are being forgotten, as the darkest symbols and motifs of that era become trivialized.

In 1945, General Dwight D. Eisenhower wrote a letter to General George C. Marshall following Eisenhower’s visit to a Nazi concentration camp.  In it, he wrote, “The things I saw beggar description…The visual evidence and the verbal testimony of starvation, cruelty, and bestiality were so overpowering…I made the visit deliberately, in order to be in a position to give that first-hand evidence of these things if ever, in the future, there develops a tendency to charge these allegations as propaganda.”  Today those words are emblazoned on the outside of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, a testament to the character and foresight of the man who wrote them.

Mr. Secretary, B’nai B’rith calls on the Department of Veterans Affairs to promptly remove the three swastika-bearing gravestones.  There cannot be a rationale or justification for allowing these symbols of hatred and genocide to continue to deface U.S. military cemeteries.  Seventy-five years after Eisenhower’s letter to Marshall, when first-hand witnesses to the Holocaust are rapidly dwindling in numbers, we cannot risk the minimization of the Holocaust that the unwarranted acceptance of its sinister iconography would encourage.

Respectfully,
                        
Charles O. Kaufman                                                     Daniel S. Mariaschin
President                                                                      Executive Vice President and CEO

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  • About Us
    • 175th Anniversary >
      • Timeline
    • Annual Report >
      • 2019 Annual Report
      • 2018 Annual Report
      • 990 Forms
    • Presidents Book
    • Around the World >
      • Australia & New Zealand
      • Canada
      • Cuba
      • Europe
      • Israel
      • Latin America >
        • Argentina
        • Brazil
        • Chile, Bolivia and Peru >
          • Anti-Semitism Forum in Santiago 2019
        • Northern Latin America and the Caribbean
        • Organization of American States (OAS)
        • Uruguay and Paraguay
      • South Africa
      • United States >
        • Allegheny/Ohio Valley
        • Chesapeake Bay
        • Colorado
        • Evergreen
        • Golden Pacific
        • Great Lakes >
          • B'nai B'rith Great Lakes Scholarship Program
        • Greater Florida
        • Kentucky
        • Liberty
        • MetroNorth
        • Midwest
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        • North Central
        • Southern California >
          • Knesset B'nai B'rith
        • Omaha, Nebraska
        • Southern Communities >
          • Atlanta, Georgia
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        • Texarkoma
        • Tri-State
    • Departments & Careers
    • Calendar
    • Events >
      • 2020 National Healthcare Award
      • 2020 B'nai B'rith Leadership Forum
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      • Continuing Education
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    • Programs >
      • BBRAVO
      • For Communities >
        • Project H.O.P.E.
      • For Culture and Education >
        • Unto Every Person
        • Center For Jewish Identity
        • Enlighten America
        • Museum and Archives >
          • B'nai B'rith Klutznick National Jewish Museum® Collection
          • Holocaust Art Resource List
          • Palestine Mandate Coins
        • Smarter Kids - Safer Kids
      • For Kids >
        • B'nai B'rith Cares for Kids
        • Diverse Minds
    • Senior Staff
    • B'nai B'rith Connect >
      • B'nai B'rith Connect Fall 2019 Newsletter
      • Past Connect Events
    • Privacy Policy
  • Global Advocacy
    • Take Action!
    • Anti-Semitism / None Shall Be Afraid >
      • About None Shall Be Afraid
      • B'nai B'rith on the Front Lines
      • Resources
      • Students Speak Out Against Anti-Semitism Contest
      • Take Our Pledge
    • Intercommunal Affairs
    • Tolerance and Diversity
    • Europe
    • Latin America
    • Canada
    • Israel and The Middle East
    • United Nations
    • United States
  • Israel
    • World Center – Jerusalem >
      • Sally Bein
    • Israel and the Middle East
    • Israel Emergency Fund
    • Fighting BDS
    • History in Israel
    • Center Stage 2020
    • Previous Center Stage Editions
    • Jewish Rescuers Citation >
      • Jewish Rescue
  • Seniors
    • CSS Response to COVID-19
    • Virtual Trainings
    • CSS Advocacy
    • 50 Years of Senior Housing
    • B'nai B'rith Senior Housing Network Timeline >
      • Wilkes-Barre
      • Harrisburg, Pa.
      • St. Louis, Mo.
      • Reading, Pa.
      • Silver Spring, Md.
      • Allentown, Pa.
      • Peoria, Ill.
      • Houston, Texas
      • Claymont, Del.
      • Pasadena, Texas
      • Boston, Mass.
      • Hot Springs, Ark.
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      • Scranton, Pa.
      • Fort Worth, Texas
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      • Schenectady, N.Y.
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      • Bronx, N.Y.
      • Tuscon, Ariz. - B'nai B'rith Covenant House
      • Marlton, N.J.
      • Los Angeles, Calif.
      • New Haven, Conn.
      • Chesilhurst, N.J.
      • Tucson, Ariz. - Gerd & Inge Strauss B'nai B'rith Manor on Pantano
      • Dothan, Ala.
      • Sudbury, Mass.
    • CSS Staff Bios
    • B'nai B'rith Resident Leadership Retreat
    • CSS Puerto Rico Meeting 2019
    • Housing Locations
    • Seniority Report Newsletter
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      • Get Involved
      • Cuba Blog
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      • Cuba History
    • Disaster Relief >
      • Africa
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      • Haiti
      • Latin America
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        • SBP-New York Thanks B'nai B'rith Disaster Relief
  • News & Media
    • B'nai B'rith Impact
    • B'nai B'rith Magazine >
      • 2020 Winter B'nai B'rith Magazine
      • Magazine Archives
      • Past Magazine Articles
    • Expert Analysis >
      • Policy and Advocacy
      • Israel
      • Seniors
      • Jewish Identity
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  • Partner with Us
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    • Planned Giving & Endowments >
      • Bequests
      • Charitable Gift Annuities
      • Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT)
      • Donor Testimonials
    • Giving >
      • Donate Stock
      • Foundations & Corporate Giving
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      • Shop AmazonSmile
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